Residents invited to learn more about work to restore RSPB's Insh Marshes
Plans are under way to restore the RSPB Insh Marshes floodplain and residents in local communities are being invited to drop-in sessions to find out more.
Uprooted trees strategically placed in the River Tromie in the reserve are helping to restore the floodplain by altering the flow of water and creating new habitat.
Supported by the Scottish Government’s Nature Restoration Fund, the range of habitats created by installing woody material provide spawning, feeding and resting habitats for fish such as Atlantic salmon.
A wide range of aquatic invertebrates will also benefit from this ‘messier’ habitat and birds like dippers, kingfishers and goldeneye will reap the benefits of healthier invertebrate and fish populations.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, landowners attempted to straighten rivers and build embankments at Insh Marshes.
However, this meant the faster-flowing water became too swift for fish to spawn, and water was not able to spill over into the floodplain during heavy rainfall, increasing flood risk and decreasing water quality.
By the 20th Century, much of these interventions had fallen into disrepair as modern farming machinery was too heavy to be used in wet areas.
This resulted in fewer areas being used for agriculture, with land reverting back to marsh and being left to nature.
Landowners RSPB have said the remainder of these human interventions are now 'causing more harm than good and require costly and unsustainable intervention'.
Part of the wider landscape-scale restoration vision of Cairngorms Connect, staff and river experts are developing a project to restore and reconnect the floodplain at Insh Marshes 'delivering benefits for people, climate and nature'.
Further restoration projects are in development, and the site team are keen to share updates with local communities.
Karen Birkby, RSPB Insh Marshes site manager, said “We worked closely with local communities and stakeholders in 2020 to incorporate their views and feedback into our river restoration plans.
"Since then, we’ve been working hard to develop the project, taking into account this feedback.
“We’re now able to share an update with local communities and would love to invite anyone interested to our Restoration Conversations drop-in events this May.”
The River and Floodplain Restoration Conversations will take place on Tuesday 30th May, 12–7pm at Kincraig Community Hall and on Wednesday 31st May, 12–7pm at Talla nan Ros in Kingussie.
The project is being supported by the Endangered Landscapes Programme and the Scottish Government’s Nature Restoration Fund, managed by NatureScot.
Who are Cairngorms Connect?
Cairngorms Connect is a partnership of neighbouring land managers (Wildland Limited, Forestry and Land Scotland, RSPB Scotland and NatureScot) working towards a 200-year vision to
enhance habitat, species and ecological process across a vast 600 square kilometre area within the Cairngorms National Park.
The partnership has received funding from the Endangered Landscape Programme (ELP) to help progress the landscape scale restoration which is ongoing.
The Endangered Landscapes
Programme (ELP) is funded by Arcadia, a charitable fund of Lisbet Rausing and Peter Baldwin, and is managed by the Cambridge Conservation Initiative.
Cairngorms Connect has made a successful application to NatureScot for funding for the development phase of the Insh Marshes project via the ‘Nature Restoration Fund: Transforming Nature’ stream of funding.
The group will be working with partners RSPB to deliver the project and have said the charity brings a detailed knowledge of the Insh Marshes floodplain having managed the site since the 1970s.
